1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to power supplies and more particularly relates to safely connecting devices to a power source.
2. Description of the Related Art
A power supply, sometimes known as a power supply unit or PSU, is a device or system that supplies electrical or other types of energy to an output load or group of loads. A power supply, in some embodiments may be configured to convert power in one form to another form, such as converting AC power to DC power. The regulation of power supplies is typically done by incorporating circuitry to tightly control the output voltage and/or current of the power supply to a specific value. The specific value is closely maintained despite variations in the load presented to the power supply's output, or any reasonable voltage variation at the power supply's input.
A single power supply maybe used, in some cases, to simultaneously provide power to several electronic devices or loads. Additional loads may be connected to or disconnected from the power supply as needed. When a load is connected to a power supply, it is possible that the load may have a short or other failure that may cause system errors and system shut down due to the bus voltage dropping too low. In extreme cases, such failures can even cause catastrophic system failures due to fire or melting circuitry.
Conventional art relies on over-current or over-load protection designed into the power system to prevent a shorted or very low impedance load from causing a system failure. However, presently available over-load protection devices are unable to react quickly enough to prevent system bus voltage interruption, output-latching, or even physically damaged hardware. In cases, where there are multiple loads connected to a single power supply it may be difficult or impossible to detect a short one of the loads before damage has already been incurred, or a fault in a single load may cause an interruption of power to other loads. Further, the tripping of an over-load protection device can itself cause unwanted results in the performance of a power supply, such as sudden drops or increases in power on a power bus.
The present invention is provided overcome the problems in the conventional art.